Bright lights, big city. No, I am not in Vegas. I'm in Des Plaines, IL at the Rivers Casino. You've heard of Des Plaines right? One of the little suburban cities West of Chicago that was mainly unheard of until about 6 months ago when the new casino opened. I am beginning to doubt this whole "recession" thing after witnessing the amount of people willing to throw dollars down on the roulette wheel with careless abandon.
So it's a Saturday night and this place is hopping. It's not a big place but there is a pretty good restaurant/steak house called Hugo Frog Bar. It is a little pricey but the crab cakes were light and flaky with big chunks of delicious crab meat and...... again I digress......distracted by food. Must focus. This is all about me finding Mr. Right or at least Mr. Right Now!
Ok, so the dinner and wine were great. And I don't even want to mention the carrot cake! This thing was so enormous, the 5 of us ate a slice and still had some to take home (yes, there was leftover dessert even with me at the table). But the cream cheese frosting was just YUMMY! The cake was moist and there were also raisins, which I consider a little bonus, when you bite into that sweet little piece of joy, mid-chew!
Let's just skip ahead to the "nightclub" scene. So there is this bar area where there are some couches and big screen TVs with different games showing. Then after 10pm they slide the doors to the main casino shut to close off the area, and there is a DJ or live band on the weekends, so it becomes a little nightclub.
So on this particular night we are lucky because there is a Journey tribute band belting out some of my favorite tunes. Who doesn't LOVE some classic Steve Perry? Ok, I am dating myself, but did I mention this was my 40th birthday celebration as well? Yes, I have crossed over to the dark side, oops, I meant my forties. (Yes, I'm still having difficulty putting a positive spin on this whole "40 thing" and I am not doing it gracefully to say the least...).
So after catching a few tunes and making the rounds of the bar territory to scope out any potential candidates (and coming up empty handed), we decide to move to the casino. I am feeling LUCKY.
I know they will laugh me out of the high roller area when I ask where the penny slots are, so I just skip it and head to the roulette tables. Now THIS is my game! I throw down my cash (3 very crisp 20 dollar bills, which happens to be my limit for the night, aside from the $40 allocated to be eaten up by the slot machines later). I scan the table and it's all men. Of course 2 of the 5 have women hovering over the back of their chairs protecting their territory. The other 3 are nothing to write home about but their big stacks of chips catch my attention especially when I look down on my piddily pile. But before I can properly determine if there are any viable candidates in my viewing area, my chips are spent when the damn marble lands on unlucky number 11. Time to move on as other gamblers rudely try to edge into my table space. I mean how anxious are you to throw your money down?
As I circle the floor looking for the lucky slot machine that will soon be the recipient of my last 40 dollars, these gambling men don't even look up from their piles of chips or lit up slot machines, so I can't even attempt to make eye contact with anyone! Needless to say, I'm not getting any attention being up against Lady Luck tonight.
Research Conclusion: This was a fun spot to celebrate a birthday with a group of gal friends! However, the men are there for a purpose, and you have a better chance of winning the big jackpot than scoring a man. I would have to put this place on the NO list for meeting potential candidates but again, not a bad place for a girls night out (assuming your friends are not gambling addicts of course).
So I'll sign off for now as 40, and still not having sex in the city............
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